Joined Franciscans at age 16. Ascetic. First Italian to follow the reform movement of SaintPeter Alcantara who sought to make the Order more devoted to penance and austerity. John had such a reputation for holiness that his superiors put him in charge of establishing a new friary before he was ordained. He joined the work crew, serving as a hod carrier, then a mason. Novice master, guardian, and provincial of the Order. When his term as provincial expired, he dedicated himself to hearing confessions and practising mortification, two concerns contrary to the spirit of the dawning Age of Enlightenment. Had the gifts of prophecy and healing, and would swoon into ecstasies; known to levitate and bilocate.